Thursday, February 23, 2012

So it's been 90 days (technically 91 as I write this) since I set foot on Indian soil. I get questions asking how I'm doing here, and what it's like living in India...

Lookin' deranged while representing the 'D'!

The Food.

I'll admit, I was pretty worried about what I was going to eat when I moved here. I dislike Indian food in the U.S. No, scratch that, I LOATHE Indian food in the U.S. An overly seasoned, saucy, curried mess looking more like something that should fill a diaper than fill a plate. Let me tell you, REAL Indian food isn't really like that. Yes, there are spices, yes, there is curry, but it's just NOT the same. Much like 'American' food here in Chennai is a pale version of the real thing in most cases, Indian food in the U.S. is a pale version of the real thing.

As you might guess, rice is a staple food. It takes multiple forms. Rice is used whole as part of a dish or ground into flour to make any number of things like idlis, uttapam, dosas, and murukku. For those of you that think I just fell asleep on my keyboard, I assure you, I didn't.

Idlis: a steamed rice cake (not like the crunchy things that Quaker makes, but soft and delicious)

Uttapam: a thick pancake made with rice flour, I love these with onions. SO good. The onion caramelizes and is so damn delicious.

Onion uttapam with several chutneys, and sambar.

Dosas: a large, thin crepe-like pancake, I love these with sambar.

Murukku: an extruded dough string that is fried. This is a snack food, but I love it, so I had to mention it.

Poori: a flatbread made from unleavened wheat dough. When this is deep-fried, it puffs up like a little dough balloon. I adore this with the masala potato stuff (I can never remember the name).

Parotta: a layered flatbread that is best likened to a flat and VERY delicious croissant. These are among my favorite Indian foods.

Sambar- a liquidy stew made of lentils and vegetables (often onions, tomatoes, etc.) This is one of my favorites, I love it with idlis, uttapam, doses, vadas, etc. So yum.

Things that are interesting:

Utensils are your hands in many cases. Yes, you will see some people use spoons, but the majority of people eat with their hands, even rice. Sometimes at lunch, I sit in awe watching people mix their rice with sambar and other sauces, and deftly placing it in their mouths.

Mutton isn't sheep, as it is in the U.S. and many other places. It's goat, and yes, I've tried it. It's goaty. Nah, honestly, it tastes a little like a gamier version of dark meat chicken.

Snacks.

I have to admit, Indian snacks will be the death of me. Whether the aforementioned murukku, or the packaged biscuits that are store-bought, they're all pretty much delicious. I live for these sugar-glazed heart shaped cookies called Little Hearts. I will pretty much need to ship back a case or so with me when I move back. :-D

Transportation.

This is out of another world, and not for the weak of heart. Driving/riding can be terrifying and exhilarating at the same time, depending on the day, the driver, and your attitude. I've had days where a car has stopped less than a foot away from me, and days that were great! We travel mostly by auto-rickshaw, which is faster, cheaper, and open air. Open air for me is a bonus because being a lifelong sufferer of motion sickness/carsickness, riding in a car in India is pure hell for me in this traffic. Bargaining is always a factor with autos though, which can be a real pain in the ass sometimes. I figure that Chris and I pay about 20-50% more than a local for rides merely because of us being American. That said, I've gotten pretty brutal, and will send them on their way rather than bicker over 20-40 rupees. (approx 40-80¢). What can I say, I'm cheap.

There are driving laws in India, but I'm 99.99% sure that no one follows them. People drive on both sides of the road (even when traffic is present in both directions), traffic signals (though few and far between) are merely a suggestion, and there is definitely a death wish that comes into play. I will never, ever complain about shitty drivers in the U.S. again.

People.

For the most part, people are nice. There are, like anywhere in the world, people that are genuinely nice and sweet, and people that really suck. It's human nature. We get stared at a lot, and not normal glances, more like nudge their friends, point at you staring. There are days when it doesn't bother me, and days where it infuriates me. I understand curiosity, but sometimes it just borders on rudeness. The people that I don't mind staring are the kids. I LOVE the kids, they're the cutest, funniest little creatures. They get so excited when they see us, and smiles explode across their faces when we wave. This picture was taken on my ride home from work tonight, they were so damn adorable I couldn't resist a picture:

Totally freakin' adorable, right?!

I find that the people that talk to us are totally curious about our lives, why we chose to live here, and where we're from. Auto drivers have told me about their families, their lives, even about their names (a man named Raja comes to mind, he asked if I knew what that meant, and before I could reply, he extended his arms and exclaimed 'It means KING!!' It was a hilarious moment).

Shopping.

Shopping isn't fun in Chennai. It's frustrating and difficult, and much harder than it needs to be. Our local grocery store is quaint and amusing, but there seems to be little rhyme or reason for product placement in some places. You can find DDT next to dog food next to toothpaste and incense. Milk is sold in what I can best describe as a juice box, and is not refrigerated, and the eggs are sold from the counter by the cash registers, and again, are not refrigerated.

Electronics are sold at a different place than appliances, so don't assume you can buy a power strip at the same place you bought your washing machine. The electronics store we go to requires that you go to a counter, tell them what you want, they go fetch it, then you pay and leave. Drugs are sold at a Chemist/Pharmacy where you can essentially go in, tell what ails you, receive a medication, pay and leave. Yes, this means that when you go in with a cough, you will probably walk out with codeine-based Corex cough syrup (and for less than $2, no less!).

Another odd thing about shopping is that certain things are sold in certain areas. For instance, if you want a lamp, you go to the area where lamps are sold. Furniture? The same! Store after store in a given area will sell the same thing.

The Environment.

I don't just mean the climate, the trees, etc., I also mean the trash, the dogs, and the beggars. This is the part of India that gets hard. There is trash everywhere, and the stench (while passing by in autos) is overwhelming. There are trash bins located on most corners, but trash seems to accumulate around them rather than in them. This brings me to the dogs. There are stray dogs everywhere, some are plump and well-fed from the trash, some are sickly and plagued with mange. As a HUGE dog person, this is something that is really hard to see on a daily basis. I want to take them all home with me! Sharing the garbage are goats, and sometimes even cows. Lastly are the beggars. I liken them to zombies, gaunt and dirty with their vacant eyes, raising a hand to their mouth in a gesture of eating.

As far as the weather, it's been beautiful so far, but it's starting to heat up, and that's going to S-U-C-K. Today, for instance, it was 90°F with 78% humidity. In February. :-/ I'm pretty sure I'm going to die this summer. :) The trees are beautiful, the flowers are everywhere, and we even have fruit trees in our backyard! (a Jackfruit tree, mango tree, and coconut tree!)

So yeah, that's it for now. I promise I'll write more regularly from now on... I hope. :D